Slovenian Parliament unanimously adopts Energy Efficiency Act

Energy efficiency legislation was separated from Slovenia’s umbrella energy law. Lawmakers in Ljubljana supported the 35% target for an increase in energy efficiency by the end of the decade from the 2005 levels and ambitious goals for decreasing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in buildings.

The National Assembly of Slovenia, which has 90 members, passed the Energy Efficiency Act with 77 votes in favor and none against. The law regulates areas previously covered in the Energy Act and brings the country in line with new European Union rules. It contains measures of improvement for all sectors and stakeholders.

The EU has a goal to boost energy efficiency levels by 32.5% compared to the 2007 baseline in the next decade and Slovenia’s government set the goal of at least 35%. The law with the Slovenian acronym ZURE includes energy efficiency requirements for products and buildings and determines the tasks of relevant institutions, the Ministry of Infrastructure said.

Separate metering of heating, cooling, hot water consumption

Obligations were laid out for measuring energy consumption and calculating energy costs together with related fines. They transpose the European Union’s Energy Efficiency Directive with regard to cost-sharing in buildings with several apartments.

All new buildings that have a central heating or cooling source or are connected to district heating or cooling networks will have to be equipped with individual consumption meters including hot water. The devices will need to be able to be read remotely.

Greenhouse gas emissions in buildings need to be cut 70% by 2030

The law stipulates the installation of chargers for electric vehicles in parking lots and resting points. New buildings with more than ten parking spaces and those under major renovation will have to add a separate cable for the purpose.

The lawmakers agreed with the 2030 goals for the buildings sector to reduce energy consumption by 20% and greenhouse gas emissions by at least 70%, both from the 2005 levels. Almost all parliamentary groups backed the bill.

The government in Ljubljana sent the bill to parliament in July.